The Greens of Jericho

Ahhhh! Such a satisfying story! I love the long drawn out stories, but there's something to be said for the instant gratification of a story like this one, all wrapped up in nice little package (with room for either more to come, your imagination to take flight, or both.)

A partial list of things I loved:

• Heather's list of Hot and Cold periods in their relationship and Jake's list of Stops and Starts. This was a great device for telling the parts of the story we already knew as well as the parts we didn't.

• That Jake, while playing catch up, had at least made up his mind and wasn't giving up on Heather in some 'woe is me, I'm not good enough for her' funk. He knew what he wanted from life, he was pretty sure he could have it, and he didn't chicken out. Thank you!

• That Roger came back to Emily, at least for a little while. I don't actually hate Emily… she just annoys me to no end, and I'm glad that she and Roger were able to be together for just a little longer. Roger seemed infinitely better for Emily than Jake to me because he would challenge her. She didn't like it, but he did – and she put up with it. (And, yes I am absolutley biased in my belief that Heather is better for Jakethan Emily.)

• That the conflict was resolvable. These are two people who want to be together. Jake reached out, but the letter went astray. All Heather needed to know was that the letter existed. So simple. No melodrama.

Hot. When Jake showed up at her house, the look of urgency so apparent on his features, Heather knew she’d follow him anywhere. He took her to meet Robert Hawkins, which surprised her. It was to be one of many surprises that day. Jake explained exactly who was responsible for the Day of Change and asked for her help. He needed her. He trusted her.

Cold. Realizing she’d have to betray someone she cared about to help Jake dampened any exhilaration she may otherwise have felt at being needed by him. Exhilaration was replaced by the feeling of foolishness and the suspicion that he had used her feelings for him to ensure her help. Knowing this, she was willing to help, but anger and distrust replaced her view of Jake Green.

Thank you so much for addressing the scene/choice that I most abhor from the whole series. I absolutely despised Jake (on Heather's behalf) for using her feeling for him against her that way. Frankly, after that I thought she should tell him to go to hell and that he deserved to be miserable with Emily for the rest of his life. (Yes, I'm still just a little bit passionate about that scene!)

But after reading this whole story I can see how Heather could get past being used by Jake that way. I do hope that he apologized at some point though. :-) 

In that moment, he felt enveloped by her hope, her promise.

Jake kissed her gently, slowly, before pulling away from the kiss amid her silent protest. With a husky voice, he asked, “Now will you finally tell me what you’re planning to do with the rest of your life?”

With a twinkle in her eyes and laughter in her heart, Heather answered his question.

AH! Wonderful! I'm pretty sure I know Heather's answer. :-D This was absolutely perfect. I'm sure I lost a little productivity at work today thinking about this one, but I don't mind one bit! Thank you for sharing!

Author's Response:

Thank you, Marzee!  I'm so glad that you enjoyed it.  I was feeling the need for a little Jake/Heather fluff, and I needed a diversion from Dangerous, so this was what came out.  I really wanted the chance to fast forward through everything that had happened and have them be two people who, at the end of the day, despite a lot of separation and misunderstandings, truly love one another.  Heehee...and of course, I think we know what Heather's answer to Jake's question is.  Thank you again for your comments. :)